White Smoke & P0430
 

All,
I had my CIL come on last week. Checked the code and saw it could be the MAF sensor, O2 Sensors or Cat (P0430). I cleared the code and it returned, after the engine cycled. I bought some MAF cleaner and cleaned up the MAF on Sunday. Yesterday, I reset the code. This morning when I started the car I noticed some white smoke and could smell exhaust. I have smelled exhaust a couple of times before. This is the first time I remember seeing smoke. It was a little chillier this morning, than it has been. It was around 56*. I was curious if anyone had any thoughts about the code being related to the smoke.

I did some reading and white smoke usually means AOS. I plan on doing the shade tree test of pulling the oil filler and checking suction on it. The white smoke did clear up and I did not see it anymore. I will check and see if I see any more smoke when I drive it in around 1.5 hours.

Thanks for any and all help.

A little white smoke on start up is normal for these car. If it keeps smoking then its possibly the AOS I beleive. I read the reason for a little smoke after the car sits is because of the flat cylinder configuration, a little oil will settle.

The sky IS falling!

But then it's an 18 year old car. Old cars frequently offer up a puff of smoke. If it's running right otherwise, don't worry about it. You don't need a new engine.

At 56deg the white smoke could be a little condensation as well. If you have a manometer, a quick check might be worthwhile. Otherwise, figure out what is throwing your CEL and not worry too much about it overall. If you do need an AOS, it’s a PITA to replace, but not really a big deal.

I agree on the condensation. I plan to get a manometer. So far the car has not done it again. I had the code pop up again this morning. I need to figure out how to test my O2 Sensors.

Thanks,

The CEL went off by itself yesterday. I am hoping whatever the issue was worked itself out. I will check it on my reader, but pretty happy for now.